


one thing missing

by notall2gether



Series: Ib Drabbles [3]
Category: Ib (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, More angst, Oh look, what a surprise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-04-24
Packaged: 2020-01-31 10:47:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18589693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notall2gether/pseuds/notall2gether
Summary: They look the same on the surface, but one of them has one thing missing, and this sets the two apart.





	one thing missing

**Author's Note:**

> Oh look. Fake!Garry angst.

You are a fake.

So close to the original, and yet at the same time, so far away. Indistinguishable from  _ him _ at a glance, but different on the inside.

He is more genuine, more real. More valuable. 

You, on the other hand? A cheap imitation of the real thing. Fabricated.

_ Worthless. _

You’ve known all of this ever since you came into existence, ever since  _ he _ entered the Fabricated World.

You watched as he almost died, and was saved by the girl with the red rose. You watched as they made their way through the gallery, escaped the painting hoard in the Gray Room, and eventually met Mary. You watched as he was separated from the two girls and had to deal with all sorts of hell from the dolls. As he discovered Mary’s true nature, and suffered for it.

You saw everything. From his first arrival, to the very end, when he gave his rose to Mary in exchange for the other girl’s red rose, and died because of it.

Always watching, never interfering. Until the girl—Ib—was about to leave the gallery.

You jump at your chance, then. You lure her away from the mural, trapping her here forever. That’s supposed to be your purpose, right?

Then why do you feel so  _ empty? _

Ib is long gone, now. She wandered off, at some point, and never came back. You’re alone again—alone with nothing to entertain you but your own thoughts.

Most things in the Fabricated World avoid you—why, exactly, you’re not sure, but you’re not about to complain about it. So it comes as a surprise when you actually here something other than the creepy music that seems to play here for no discernible reason.

It’s not much, just a quiet gasp, but it’s enough to catch your attention. 

You look over your shoulder, already guessing what you’re going to see.

For once, you’re right. Behind you, standing at the end of the hallway, is Garry—the real one.

The  _ better  _ one.

He’s staring at you in complete shock. You wish he would stop—it wasn’t as if this was the most outlandish thing he’d seen in this world.

You say so, and he blinks rapidly, as if he thinks he’s seeing things. Which, to be fair, is a perfectly reasonable conclusion to come to in the Fabricated World.

When he finally gets enough of a grip on himself to reply, he says, “Well, if you were me-” He stops as he realizes that that’s probably not the best choice of words considering the situation. “If you were in my situation I bet you’d have done the same thing.”

“How do you know that?” you ask. “You don’t even know me.”

“Well…we’re the same person, right?”

“Wrong.”

He blinks.

“We look alike, sure. But we’re far from the same person. You’re more real, more genuine,  _ better  _ than I am. I’m just a replica. A cheap imitation of the real thing. I'm missing one thing that you have. Or at least…had.” You hesitate. “…come to think of it, I don’t think you have it anymore, either. Didn’t you die?”

He looks taken aback. You can’t blame him, you suppose. It’s not as if he knew you were watching him.

Eventually he asks, “How am I better than you?”

“Because you sacrificed everything to save Ib’s life. All I did was distract her from leaving and trapped her here forever. And I didn’t even notice when she went missing. I  _ still  _ don’t know where she is and it’s my fault she’s still here in the first place!”

“What?!”

You flinch slightly.

“She’s still here? I have to find her…” He looks at you, disbelief in his eyes. “Why did you do that?”

You only look away. Saying that you thought it was your purpose sounds both unbelievable and pretentious.

“I guess we’re not the same person after all.”

_ Ouch.  _

“Yeah,” you agree. “Like I said. You’re the real thing, and I’m worthless.”

He doesn’t deny it, instead running off back the way he came, undoubtedly looking for Ib.

You stare after him for a moment, before turning back around and returning to wandering the gallery halls.

You really shouldn’t be surprised by his reaction, but that doesn’t stop it from hurting.

What kind of worthless scum would purposefully trap a nine-year-old girl in a place like this?

You, apparently.

You wish you could go back in time and undo it all, save Garry’s life somehow and help them escape. But you can’t, and now you’re stuck, alone, regretting too many things and not having s single way to escape from your thoughts.

Perhaps you deserve to be tormented by your own mistakes…

 

**Author's Note:**

> I ended it badly, I know. Leave me alone.
> 
> I'm not sure I'm happy with how this turned out.


End file.
